People who live in wheelchairs are constantly reminded of things they can't do.
But not during a Life Rolls On surfathon.
It's a busy Saturday at La Jolla Shores, and 10-year-old Hunter Pochop is ready for the one day each year he gets to surf.
"In the other sports I play, you don't go in the water," Pochop said.
Pochop has spina bifida and spends most of his time in a wheelchair. But on this day, his buddy Corey Staley and other volunteers take him out into the surf.
This is Hunter’s fifth Life Rolls On event. And he rides the waves like a seasoned pro.
Staley is one of about 500 volunteers here to help people with spinal cord injuries and disorders experience the joys of surfing. The Marina del Rey-based Life Rolls On Foundation organized the event. Life Rolls On stages similar extravaganzas throughout California and up and down the East Coast.
More than 100 people get a shot at surfing. They’re assigned to one of seven different teams, each with its own color T-shirt. Each person gets a 20-minute window to surf.
Staley heads up the “red” team. He’s been working these events since they started 14 years ago.
“Well, to be honest with you, I tell people this all the time. I almost feel selfish, like I get so much out of being here," he said, smiling.
Staley remembers one young man his team took out surfing a few years ago. When they got him out in the water, the man said he wanted to take just a few moments to float around and soak up some rays.
“Sat there for probably four minutes. No one said a word," Staley recalled. "You looked around, and there’s six of us guys, kind of manly. Every single one of us has tears in his eyes. And he looked at us and said, ‘This is the first time since my accident that I’m not in a chair, that I’m free, and I’m no different than anybody else.’”
Sharp Rehabilitation Services was the co-sponsor of Saturday’s event. Sharp Rehab’s Medical Director Jerome Stenehjem said it’s a great opportunity for people with spinal cord injuries and disorders to challenge themselves.
“People don’t know what their limitations are or what they can do until they try things," Stenehjem said. "And so this is a great example of something a person with a disability would think, I can’t do that. Give them an opportunity and they can do it, and it opens up not only this opportunity, but many others, I think.”
120 people get their shot at surfing. They’re assigned to one of seven different teams, each with its own color t-shirt. Each person gets a 20-minute window to surf.
Sheehan Verner, 52, has done a lot of adaptive sports, and has even gone skydiving. But he’s never surfed before.
Members of the blue team carefully put him in position, and take him out to the surf. After a couple of minutes, they get the all-clear signal, and push Verner into a wave.
Team members cheer him on as he glides into shore. After riding a few more waves, and wiping out once or twice, Verner is wheeled back up the beach.
He can think of one word that describes the experience: awesome.
“It kind of feels good when your body gets tossed all around in the water," Verner said. "‘Cause you’ve forgotten you even had those muscles.”
